Sri Aurobindo to Dilip - Volume I

Jaigum

Preface

In the Gita, Sri Krishna says to Arjuna:

Yad-yad vibhuti matsatvam srimadoorjitamevava

Tat-tatdevavagachha tvam mamatejomsha sambhavam

(10.41)

That is:

"Wherever you find efflorescence of grace,

Opulence, grandeur or power that thrills the heart—

Know: it all derives from a gleam of my sun-splendour"

(Translated by Sri Dilip Kumar Roy)

Such a manifestation of sun-splendour that is Sri Aurobindo, "mighty and forceful" brought forth the flowering of grace, beauty and glorious opulence in a multifaceted form, in the life of Sri Dilip Kumar Roy—our Dadaji.¹ This process is superbly documented for the first time, first hand, in the correspondence between the master and the disciple, spanning over two decades. With immense pleasure and grateful hearts we are bringing out this complete (as far as they are available) collection of the invaluable letters of Sri Aurobindo written to Dadaji in three volumes (vol I, 1928-33; vol. II, 1934-36; vol. Ill, 1937-51, including letters of the Mother). The coming together of Dadaji, Sri Dilip Kumar the seeker, and Sri Aurobindo the mentor, is a most significant phenomenon which was predestined. Theirs is a unique relationship; Sri Aurobindo described it as that "which declares itself constantly through many lives. It is a feeling which is never mistaken and gives impression of the one not only close to one but part of one's existence. The

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1. Dadaji: Sri Dflip Kuroar lovingly called so by his disciples later in his life.

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relation that is so indicated always turns out to be that of those who have been together in the past and were predestined to join again."

Sri Aurobindo went into seclusion in 1926. Dadaji sorely missed and longed intensely for personal day-to-day contact with his guru. One cannot but admit on hindsight that this was perhaps preordained. Present also were three significant traits in Dadaji: first, his mastery of the languages and the ability to express; second, his sincere earnest quest and the power to draw out great people;1 and third, his generous nature which delighted in sharing anything that was worthwhile with all seekers. Circumstances, time and the persons were right. These invaluable letters got written and a veritable spiritual treasure became available not only for Dadaji alone but also for posterity.

Sri Aurobindo showed limitless patience, understanding, love and exquisite tenderness, sparing no effort—even giving up, at times, his much needed sleeping hours to write to his Dilip whom he called a "friend and a son." Sri Aurobindo wrote, "I have poured on you my force to develop your powers to make an equal development in the yoga." They discussed philosophy, literature, humanism, rationalist ideals and materialism and a plethora of topics—in short covering all the strands of human aspirations. Sri K. D. Sethna rightly said: "It is the intimacy implying not only the unhindered approach of the disciple but also the master's own enfolding movements, that sets the pattern, mixes the colours and constitutes the highlights of the picture."

Mention must be made of the humour that we find so deliciously interspersed in these volumes of correspondence: the banter of the master and the disciple, quick repartees, wit, hilarious word pictures, terse but delightfully expressed irony, are a joy to read. Perhaps it would not be an exaggeration to say that Dilip Kumar is one of the few (if not the only) disciples who took such liberties with his guru and brought out the human side of Gurudev.

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1. Poet Rabindranath Tagore once wrote: "Dilip Kumar possesses one great gift; he wants to hear which is the reason why he can draw out things worth hearing. Wanting to hear is not a passive quality but an active one; it awakens our power of speech because we come to know our minds truly through expressions. Dilip Kumar has on many occasions given me the joy of discovering my own thoughts."

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In the Mahabharata, Arjuna was the recipient and became the channel through whom the Lord poured out the essence of Upanishadic wisdom of Sanatan Dharma in the form of the Bhagavad Gita. The modern-day intellectuals and seekers will find a close parallel in these volumes of Sri Aurobindo's letters to Dilip Kumar. However it is not a mere reiteration. There is a further evolution, Sri Aurobindo himself wrote (14 January 1932): "The traditions of the past are very great in their own place,—in the past; but I do not see why we should merely repeat them and not go farther. In the spiritual development of the consciousness upon earth the great past ought to be followed by a greater future." He further elaborated in a letter (December 1935) to Dadaji: "The spiritual life is not a thing that can be formulated in a rigid definition or bound by a fixed mental rule; it is a vast field of evolution, an immense kingdom potentially larger than the other kingdoms below it, with a hundred provinces, a thousand types, stages, forms, paths, variations of the spiritual ideal, degrees of spiritual advancement. It is from the basis of this truth, which I shall try to explain in subsequent letters, that things regarding spirituality and its seekers must be judged, if they are to be judged with knowledge.... It is only by so understanding it that one can understand it truly, enter in its past or in its future or put in their place the spiritual men of the past and the present or relate the different ideals, stages, etc. thrown up in the spiritual evolution of the human being."

This was not just a mere theory or philosophy: through detailed instructions this was concretized. To illustrate, the master teaches the disciple to become a master himself, a seemingly paradoxical path of evolution! It is pertinent to mention an outstanding event, which much later in his life brought about the making of Dilip Kumar as a guru. What happened was this: On 21 February 1949, a young seeker (Smt. Indira Devi) walked behind Dadaji for Gurudev's and Mother's darshan. Later when Dadaji was singing she went into samadhi. Gurudev wrote at once that she was a highly evolved soul and ripe for yoga. Gurudev and the Mother were willing to accept her as their disciple, an unprecedented gesture on their part. However, when Smt Indira Devi would have only Sri Dilip Kumar as her Guru, Sri Aurobindo confirmed at once that Sri Dilip Kumar

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was indeed her guru and urged him to accept her, promising that the Mother and Sri Aurobindo would work on her through him. Gurudev kept a tender watch on her physical and spiritual welfare, helping Dadaji to mould his disciple, claiming that she in turn would be of great help to Dadaji in his own sadhana— a prophecy that was fulfilled beyond all expectations.

Indira Devi developed supernormal consciousness. She had visions of Sant Mirabai and dictated songs heard in her samadhi. Gurudev Sri Aurobindo authenticated these spiritual experiences (vide letters of 7 May, 2 June and 11 June 1950). Some of these heard songs were published by the Pondicherry Ashram with the Mother's and Gurudev's consent—namely Shrutanjali. When Indira Devi developed early signs of supernormal powers such as clairvoyance, reading thoughts, clairaudience, contacts with disembodied beings etc., Gurudev wrote to Dadaji that she should not be frightened and should not reject them as they may be of help later on.

Through Sri Aurobindo's constant guidance and encouragement, both Dadaji and his daughter disciple flowered out attaining their supreme goal. Their evolution was manyfaceted. The Integral Yoga embraces the whole of life. Indira Devi expressed her ultimate self surrender and divine love through poetry, songs, dance and service to her Guru. Sri Aurobindo asked her to write poetry in English that she had not attempted before. Her first poem "When day is done..." was acclaimed by Sri Aurobindo as poetry of the first order. In Dadaji's case Sri Aurobindo through his letters took great pains to develop his poetic genius: different metres were discussed, poems corrected, revised and lavish praise both from Sri Aurobindo and Mother was bestowed whenever it was due. Sri Aurobindo and the Mother told Dadaji that his music had great evocative power.

Sri Aurobindo called Dadaji "a unique translator." Dadaji could and often did, in a matter of minutes, translate Indira Devi's songs from Hindi to Bengali and English. He also translated, sometime surpassing the original in beauty and meaning, the songs written by others from Bengali and Sanskrit to English and vice-versa in the same tune rhythm and rhyme scheme. This flowering out was brought about by yoga clearing the passage for his psychic being.

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Mother blesses Dilip and Indira Devi (April 1950)

In sheer volume, variety, depth and beauty, these letters are unmatched in the history of hagiography. Sri Aurobindo once wrote to Dilip Kumar: "More people are drawn to us through you..." Dadaji's book Sri Aurobindo Came to Me is full of references to these letters often giving the context, the questions, his own trials and difficulties which elicited Gurudev's replies. Unfortunately most of Dadaji's letters to Sri Aurobindo are not available. Originally the idea was to publish the complete correspondence between the Guru and the disciple but this was not possible at this time. However, the discerning readers may be able to construct the background through the perusal of Sri Aurobindo's letters. As Dadaji Sri Dilip Kumar Roy proclaimed once, "I have written not because of the part played by me but because through my conflict and aspirations, an aspect of his [Sri Aurobindo's] incredible self comes to the fore—a self whose flowering neither our age nor circumstances could explain."

We are indebted to Dr. Gobindo Gopal Mukhopadhyay for his constant encouragement, valuable suggestions and for explaining difficult Bengali and Sanskrit phrases in this invaluable collection. Revered Satprem and his team at Mira Aditi played a pivotal role in all aspects of this publication. We would like to make a special mention ofSujatadidi and her long association with Dadaji since her childhood. We want to thank her for her understanding and all the support she has extended. We thank Michel Danino for his dedicated and sincere effort in making this publication as beautiful and as perfect as possible. We also thank Patrice Marot for his patience and his selfless work.

We offer our humble pranams to Sri Aurobindo and the Mother as well as to Dadaji Sri Dilip Kumar Roy and Ma Indira Devi. We seek their blessings for our journey of the spirit.

Shankar Bandyopadhyay

Hari Krishna Mandir, Pune

February 21, 2003

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